Like father, like daughter
by RedSnowQueen
Summary: Eugene and Rapunzels daughter tires of the palace life and escapes the walls to take on her fathers old persona of Flynn Rider. But danger ensues and Elizabeth finds herself in a situation that she never dreamt that she'd have to be in.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tangled :(**

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"Daddy, will you read me a bedtime story tonight?" Elizabeth asked her father, as he came out of a meeting.

Eugene inwardly groaned to himself. He loved telling stories to his daughter, but he was just so tired from the many meetings that took place that day. Looking down at his daughter, he immediatly regretted it. Her big emerald green eyes widened up at him and Eugene felt like he was under her spell. She was too adorable for words!

"Fine, I'll tell you a story. Go get ready for bed and I'll be right there." He explained.

"YAY!" Elizabeth yelped and scurried down the palace hallways to her room where she continued to slip out of her purple dress and into her nightgown.

Eugene walked into his bedroom and threw himself onto the bed, savouring the feeling of comfort. Suddenly, two small petite hands grabbed at his shoulders and started to untense his muscles.

"Wow Eugene, you're really sore." Rapunzel pointed out.

"Thanks alot Punzie, I didn't even realize that." Eugene replied sarcastically.

"So, how did the debates go?" Rapunzel asked, still working her hands into her husbands shoulders.

"Oh you know, the same old boring stuff. I managed to flick some crumbs at the sleeping ambassador." Eugene snickered.

"Eugene..." Rapunzel scolded.

"I know, I know! I promised I wouldn't behave like Flynn Rider. But Punzie you should have been there. I mean...ugh! How do Kings manage that kind of stuff?" Eugene complained.

"Well...father says he just fakes it until he makes it." Rapunzel quoted.

Eugene thought the former wise Kings words and gave an approving nod. He could do that. He was used to 'winging it' anyways.

A light knock sounded on the door and two big green eyes peered through the crack. The door opened fully and Elizabeth walked in, Pascal sitting atop her brown head of hair.

"Daddy, you promised to tell me a story." Elizabeth pouted.

Eugene tried to bite back a a guilty frown. She was making him feel so bad about ignoring her! And those eyes, who could resist them?

"Oh, Eugene why don't you go on and tell her one." Rapunzel urged, helping her six year old daughter onto the bed.

Eugene racked his brains for a second as to what story to tell her. He had so many run through his mind that it was hard to pick. Finally, he thought of his childhood story and a big chessy grin spread across his handsome face.

"Alright. This is The Tale of Flynnagen Rider. Swashbuckling rogue, richest man alive, not bad with the ladies either. Not that he'd ever brag, of course," Eugene started off the story.

"No, of course not," Rapunzel added, rolling her eyes.

Elizabeth giggled and urged her daddy to continue telling the story.

"Once upon a time in a forest far far away, there lived man named Flynnagen Rider who was very rich. He earned his money through stealing riches from others and sold it off for money. One day, Fylnnagen decided to steal a crown from a royal family. He suceeded of course and he managed to outwit his partners..." Eugene continued.

Elizabeth listened to the story with great interest. It sounded so fascinating to her, the whole idea of being a rogue and being rich. But talking about stealing kisses from women? Ewwww, if anything, Elizabeth didn't even like the idea of boys because she thought they had lice. As Eugene continued telling the story to his daughter, Elizabeth felt herself drifting off to sleep and it wasn't long before Eugene picked her up and carried her off to her bedroom.

After settling her down for the night, Eugene made his way back to his room and climbed into bed with Rapunzel.

"She really liked that story." Rapunzel pointed out.

"Oh really? I thought she was bored, actually." Eugene replied.

Rapunzel rolled her green eyes. "Oh come on, we both know she's just as free spirited as us." She reminded.

"Oh yeah, I remember. She tried to climb the palace walls and see how much of the kingdom she could see. I'm just glad I caught her before she broke her arm." Eugene said.

"Well aren't you just the dashing hero." Rapunzel teased.

"Why yes I am. Good night Rapunzel." Eugene replied, kissing her forehead.

"Good night Eugene." Rapunzel replied and soon, the two were asleep in each others arms.

That next afternoon, Rapunzel and Elizabeth were on their daily walk around the palace gardens. Elizabeth climbed up a big tree that had thick branches.

"Elizabeth, be careful!" Rapunzel warned.

"Don't worry mommy, I've done this before." The six year old reassured.

Rapunzel smiled at her daughter. She sure did share the same free spirit that she and Eugene had. Everywhere they went as a family, Elizabeth would pretend that she was hiding from ruffians and thugs.

She would creep behind walls and move slowly and would peer around to make sure the coast was clear of 'bad guys' or the palace guards. She had managed to sneak past them once during the night but she didn't get far when Maximus caught her.

Rapunzel was pulled out of her thoughts when she heard her daughter screaming, lying on the grass cradling her arm. Rapunzel gave a sigh and rushed over to her hysterical daughter.

"Eugene is going to love this." Rapunzel sighed to herself as she picked up her daughter, who no doubt had broken her right arm falling out of the tree.

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**I hoped you all liked it! I don't know how long this is going to be so bear with me!**

**The next chapter will jump 10 years, making Elizabeth 16.**

**Read and Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I do not own Tangled :(**

**Hey silent readers, don't be shy...tell me what you think about the story.**

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**10 years later...**

"Elizabeth Jane Fitzherbert, get back here!" Eugene yelled.

His daughter Elizabeth, now 16, bounded down the palace hallways. Her wavy brown hair bounced as she strode off.

"Forget it father! I'm not going to meet my suitors and that's final!" Elizabeth yelled back, stomping her foot.

Eugene slapped a hand to his forehead. It was too bad Rapunzel was away on an important meeting. She would know how to handle these situations better than him. Why was Elizabeth being so stubborn?

Elizabeth stormed off, down to the stables to go see Maximus. He always managed to help her forget her worries no matter what. The white stallion had grown old over the years, but Rapunzel and Eugene refused to have him put down as he was very much family to them. They never took him out riding, but they occasionally let him out of his stall do graze in the meadow.

Seeing the great white stallion, Elizabeth took out an apple from her homemade pockets hidden in her skirt.

"Hey Maxi, how's it going?" She cooed.

He neighed lightly and snatched the apple from her hand, crunching it between his teeth.

"Good boy." She smiled and opened his stall, letting him walk out towards her as if he were looking for more apples.

"Hey there, I don't have anymore." She protested.

Maximus glared at her, not being very convinced. Rolling her eyes, Elizabeth took out a second apple and handed it over. Maximus neighed sarcastically at her and snatched that away.

"Come on, let's head for the meadow." Elizabeth suggested and lead the horse outside.

Coming outside, the warm sun hit the top of Elizabeth's brown hair causing her to sweat lightly. It was a beautiful June day and Corona was having a heat wave. Elizabeth had taken the liberty of wearing a simple forest green cotton dress that her mother had made for her and she was bare foot. The feeling of the grass between her toes made her stress melt away.

Sitting down in the grass, Elizabeth watched as Maximus grazed contentedly at the grass, ignoring her presence, not that she minded of course.

Earlier that day, Eugene had sent out invites throughout the neighbouring kingdoms to invite the royals to a ball, where Elizabeth was to pick her suitor. At the age of 16, it was appropriate to start thinking about getting married, and Elizabeth hated the very idea of it. Why did she have to get married? She was still too young!

Someone from behind Elizabeth came approaching and they sat down beside her.

"You know, before I met your mother I didn't think once about getting married." Eugene mentioned.

"Really? What changed that?" Elizabeth asked, wanting to hear the story.

"Well believe it or not, your mother changed my mind. At first I thought she was just some wild naive child, but the kid grew on me." Eugene explained.

Elizabeth had heard about their life story countless times and she never tired of it. She may not be interested in finding love, but she was still a hopeless romantic when it came to hearing stories.

And speaking of stories, she very much wanted to hear one since there was not much else to do. The kingdom was doing great and Eugene didn't have any royal businesses to attend.

"Father, can you tel me a story?" Elizabeth asked.

"I don't know Liz, you seem a bit too old to be hearing about fairy tales." Eugene teased.

"What, me? Never!" She replied.

Eugene smiled at his daughter and he laid lazily on the grass beside her.

"Let's see, this is the story of how I died..." He started.

Elizabeth gave her father a startled look, wondering if he had gone crazy. Seeing her reaction, Eugene put his hands up in defense.

"Don't worry, this is actually a fun story and it isn't even mine." Eugene defended.

Elizabeth only nodded and let him continue telling her the story about his mother and how they met.

Every time she heard the story of Flynn Rider, she was fascinated. She didn't know what it was, but it just seemed to daring and adventurous. It sounded a whole lot more fun that what her life was like right now. Princess lessons, ballroom dancing, etiquette manners...ugh.

After the story, the father daughter duo got up from laying in the grass and they guided the old horse back to his stall. Maximus had heard Eugene tell the story and he had joined them shortly after it started. But he had grown tired and was ready to fall asleep. Eugene and Elizabeth helped him back and after locking his stall, they headed back to the palace.

"So! How about a nice game of catch?" Eugene asked, breaking the silence between the two.

Elizabeths' emerald green eyes wandered the halls, figuring out what they could use to throw around. Seeing a suit of armour standing off to the side, Elizabeth made sure it was empty first and snatched the helmet off.

"Catch!" She warned and tossed the heavy helmet.

Seeing what she had thrown, Eugene's face grew a look of terror as the helmet came flying at him. Quickly, he managed to snag it before it hit him in the face.

"Ha! You should see your face because it looks priceless." Eugene told his daughter as she look slack-jawed at him.

She shut her mouth and ran down the hall, stretching her arms.

"Throw it back!" She called out.

Eugene easily threw the heavy helmet back to his daughter. He may be in his older years, but he still had a spring in his step and sometimes, his old thief skills would kick in to dodge the things that his daughter threw at him when they played this game.

Elizabeth wasn't accurately close enough to catch the helmet. It whizzed past her and crashed loudly down the spiral marble stairs.

CLANG! CLINK! BOOOONNGGG!

"Ah crap, run!" Eugene said, knowing that they had woken up the older royal couple.

Queen Eleanor and King Frederich were older now, but they still lived in the palace to see their daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter. They also still ruled the kingdom since they were still alive.

The two bolted down the hallway towards the music room just as a door opened. King Frederich looked out the hallway and wondered what he had just heard. Shaking his head, he muttered something about his grand-daughter being on her mischief behaviour again.

Coming to the music room, the father daughter duo stopped to catch their breath and Eugene sat down at the piano bench. He was getting a bit wobbly in the knees and it caused him to get off his feet. He was getting too old for these games.

"Are you okay father?" Elizabeth asked.

"I'm fine honey. I'm just old." Eugene explained, his brown eyes twinkling.

"Aw, my poor father." Elizabeth laughed and ruffled her dads hair.

"Not the hair!" Eugene whined slightly and pushed his daughters hand away.

Elizabeth smirked and walked around the music room, idly playing different instruments. She hoped her dad wasn't going to bring up her suitors again.

"So Elizabeth, have you given any thought about what I said?" He asked.

So much for wishful thinking...

Elizabeth gave a frustrated sigh. She didn't want to go through this again. When was her dad going to get it through his thick head?

"Father, I don't want to get married! I'm too young! I just want to be able to do what I want to do!" Elizabeth pouted.

"Now Elizabeth..."

"No! This isn't what I want! I want to be able to go outside when I can without having Maximus or the guards around! I want to be able to venture outside of the kingdom and discover the world! I don't want to be cooped up in the palace so much. Why can't you and mother let me do that?" Elizabeth interrogated.

Eugene sighed. It was too dangerous for his only daughter to go further than the kingdom. The world was too dangerous for her and she wasn't ready. She didn't have the proper knowledge to be on her own.

"I'll tell you what, I'll let you go out on your own on occasion, if you agree to take some fencing lessons and any other fighting skills. If you want to be on your own sometimes then I want you to learn how to defend yourself. Do we have a deal?" Eugene asked, holding out his hand.

Elizabeth thought it over. So if she learned how to fight, her father would let her go outside of the kingdom? That didn't sound too bad. She took her dad's hand and shook it.

"Deal." She agreed.

Eugene smiled triumphantly.

"Good. Race you to the kitchen." He challenged and bolted out of the music room.

"HEY! No fair!" She yelled and ran after her father, laughing on the way.

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**Awww, I love writing father daughter chapters. Read and Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**This a Tangled fanfic and I am not making any money off of writing this (I wish)**

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"Attack! Beat Parry! Counter Attack! False Attack! Attack again!" Eugene instructed his daughter down in the gardens.

Elizabeth neatly delivered each move with perfection as her father yelled out fencing terms. He had been training her for about two weeks now and they had finally come to fencing. When they first started, Eugene taught her to fist fight, hide and run, climb and most importantly how to get out of tough situations. They were finishing up with sword fighting.

Rapunzel came down into the gardens with her mother and the two set up lunch at one of the stone tables with benches surrounding it.

"Elizabeth, Eugene, lunch is ready," Rapunzel announced.

"Ahhh, that is music to my ears," Eugene mused as he stared lovingly at his beautiful wife.

Using her fathers moment of drooling over Rapunzel, Elizabeth attacked him and the tip of her blade poked his protective suit.

"OUCH! I wasn't ready for that!" Eugene whined.

"Expect the unexpected," Elizabeth reminded him with a cocky smile.

Mockingly frowning, father and daughter headed over to the picnic table and sat down with Rapunzel and Queen Eleanor. On the table were some wine glasses filled with red wine. light sandwiches were neatly piled on a plate and there was a bowl of fruits from the royal gardens.

"This look great mother!" Elizabeth spoke as she filled her plate.

"Anything your mother cooks is great," Eugene said as he wrapped his arm around Rapunzels waist.

"Is that all you think is great about me?" Rapunzel teased.

Eugene didn't reply, pretending to think over her question. Rapunzel pretended to be mad and she playfully pushed him away from him. Queen Eleanor took that moment to bring up more important manners.

"So Elizabeth, are you ready for the ball tonight?"

Elizabeth groaned. She was dreading tonight so badly! She wanted to keep her mind off of the fact that she would have to be socializing with boys and finding a proper suitor.

"I guess so..." She started.

"Then you MUST be on your best behaviour. I don't want my granddaughter making a fool out of our kingdom," The Queen reminded.

"Yes grandmama," Elizabeth groaned.

"Hey stop being such a sour puss. Merida will be here tonight, you can hang out with her if you feel the need," Eugene mentioned.

"Eugene..." Rapunzel scolded.

"What? There's nothing wrong with being friends with the fiesty red headed scottish princess. I quite like her actually," Eugene confessed.

"You only like her because she's reckless," Rapunzel argued.

Eugene just rolled his eyes and turned to his daughter. He gave her a knowing wink, telling her that he felt her pain.

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Elizabeth sighed as she let the servants slip her royal gown over her head and guided her to getting properly into it. Her dress was simple, much like what her mother wore when she was younger. It was a deep royal purple with the Corona sun symbol on the hem of her skirt. Her shoulders had a similar yellow color, but it fanned out to her collar and down the sleeves. Her brown tangled hair **_(see what I did there?)_**had been brushed out and it softly grazed her shoulders. The purple set off her hair and eyes beautifully.

"Do I HAVE to wear shoes?" Eliabeth complained as her mother looked her daughter over.

Rapunzel frowned. "Unfortunatly yes. I didn't like wearing shoes either when I started living as a princess but mother says that your feet should be protected just in case one of the princes steps on them,"

Elizabeth winced as the image danced in her head. She shook it out and looked in the mirror. She had to admit, she was stunning just like her mom. They looked so much alike it was rather scary. People could easily mistake them for twins if it hadn't been for the fact that Rapunzel had a touch of silver in her hair.

"Well in that case, can I wear the silver ones?" Elizabeth asked, pointing to her simple silver flat shoes sitting in her closet.

Nodding, Rapunzel fetched her daughters shoes and placed them on her feet. Getting off of her stool, Elizabeth felt her mother place her crown on her head. Rapunzel smiled proudly at her daughter as she looked at the crown. That crown...it was the catalyst that had started Rapunzel on her new life. If Eugene hadn't stolen it, they may not have met and start a family.

"Mother, shouldn't we be going?" Elizabeth asked, pulling Rapunzel out of her thoughts.

"Oh, right. Let's go have some fun tonight," Rapunzel said and the mother daughter duo headed out of Elizabeths room and down to the stairwell that lead into the ballroom.

Coming up to the stairs, the royal announcer called out their names. "Queen Consort Rapunzel Fitzherbert and her daughter Princess Elizabeth Fitzherbert."

Elizabeth took a deep breath and headed down the spiral stairs, careful not to lose her balance and trip over her two feet. She did a quick scan of the room and saw how many people there were. The ballroom was filled! Placing her feet on the marble floor, the young princess instantly went to go find her friend Merida and was able to find her in a flash, because of her wild curly red hair.

"Merida!" Elizabeth called out as she came closer.

"Well if it ain't me ol friend. How ya doing Elizabeth?" Merida asked, pulling her friend into a hug.

Elizabeth shook her head. Sometimes it was hard to understand the scottish princess with her thick accent.

"I'm ready to crawl into a hole and die," Elizabeth replied casually.

Merida laughed and together, the two young teenagers headed over to the snack table. But before they could reach it, the music started and a handsome young man swept Elizabeth away from her companion.

"Pardon me for taking you away from your friend." The young man apologized.

"_Ugh! _Not at all, I can see her later," She told him.

"I'm Prince Owen. My mother and father are King Naveen and Queen Tiana." He introduced.

Prince Owen stood at six feet like his father with a somewhat muscular build and deep dark skin. His eyes were also dark and he had worn his traditional white suit to bring out the color in him. Elizabeth inwardly rolled her eyes. King Naveen was his father? Then there was no doubt that his son would be egostistical just like him.

"You are a very good dancer," Elizabeth complimented, remembering that she had to at least be nice.

"Thank-you. You're not too bad on your feet either," He replied, flashing a gorgeous smile.

Elizabeth didn't falter at his smile and soon the music ended and she thanked him. She was about to head off again when another Prince invited her to dance. Elizabeth inwardly sighed. It looked like she was stuck in this until the end of the night.

"Princess Elizabeth, I am Prince Jared. My mother and father are King Eric and Queen Ariel," He introduced.

Elizabeth this time felt some excitment rush through her. Her mother and his mother were best friends! Maybe they could hit it off as friends too...right?

"Yes! Our mothers are best friends. She goes on a trip to your land only once a year," Elizabeth mentioned.

"That's right. In fact, I overheard my mother saying to father that they would like to invite you along the next time your mother comes out for a visit. Wouldn't that be lovely? We could get to know each other more," Prince Jared said, his blue eyes sparkling with interest.

Elizabeth knew that look. She had seen that look before on the local boys in the village. She felt disgusted by it and she immediatly stopped dancing with him.

"Uh, I'm sorry. I think I'm being summoned," She lied and headed off in the direction behind him.

"Ew ew ew ew ew. Princes shouldn't even be thinking about such thoughts yet! Why me?" Elizabeth whined to herself as she headed out to an empty terrace.

"Ah! Alone at last," Elizabeth mused to herself.

She soaked in the silence around her, save for the background music inside the ballroom. She looked out at the night sky before her and saw the north star shining brightly. An owl flew in the sky and Elizabeth felt a sense of jealousy run through her. She wished she was like that bird; free to fly wherever she could go. But she was stuck in Corona, with a responsibility to become some poor suckers wife.

"Ah! I thought I'd find you out here," Eugene called out, finding his daughter alone.

"How'd you find me?" She asked.

Eugene lazily leaned against the railing in front of him. "It was easy. I just listened for the sound of whining and boredom and followed that."

His daughter smirked and pushed away from the railing that she was leaning against. "I just wish that I was somewhere else."

"You're still not having fun, huh?" Eugene asked.

"I'm so bored I could...I could...ugh! I'm so bored that I could throw eggs at all the princes!" Elizabeth whined.

"Liz..." Eugene warned.

Elizabeth stopped talking, knowing that she was pushing it with her father. She loved him, she really did but sometimes he just didn't seem to understand her! Elizabeth wanted more to life than just being a princess. She wanted to be like that bird and go as far away from the palace as she could.

"Come on, let's go beat King Adam and Queen Belle at a game of chess," Eugene invited, his competitive side showing.

Immediatly, his daughter beamed with excitment. Finally, some competition! "Let's do it!"

But as the two walked back into the ballroom, two other princes approached the beautiful young lady. Both seemed eager to meet her.

"Princess Elizabeth, I am Prince Lumier, the son of King Adam," The blonde introduced.

"And I am Prince Chen, the son of Emporer Shang," The asian man introduced.

Caught between the two, Elizabeth didn't know what to do. Her head spun wildly in confusion. She had to get away from them!

"Uh...nice to meet you both, excuse me," Elizabeth tried to excuse herself.

"But your higness, we have not had to opportunity to dance with you," Prince Lumier spoke, his french accent making his words difficult to hear.

"Later..." Elizabeth started.

Prince Chen grabbed her arm and was already trying to whisk her away onto the dance floor, but Prince Lumier intervened.

"Hey, go dance with the fiesty red head. I saw Princess Elizabeth first," The french man spoke.

"I beg your pardon, but I believe that I was the one who reached her first," Chen defended.

Oh boy, this was getting out of hand! Elizabeth looked frantically around for her father to help her out of the situation, but he was no where to be seen. Panic ran through the young girl. She was going to have to choose who to dance with first...and she didn't want to dance with either of them! Oh what was the poor girl to do?

"Come your highness, let's go and dance into the night," Prince Lumier said, his french voice suddenly sounding seductive.

Okay,ew.

"Get lost you pompus windbag!" Prince Chen threatened and pushed the blonde away. He instantly put an arm around Elizabeth and guided her away.

She didn't like how he was touching her. It felt awkward and foreign and just plain wrong. There was that feeling of copper in her mouth, signaling that the young princess was going to bring up her supper. Wanting to prevent throwing up on his shoes, Elizabeth did the only logical thing that came to her mind.

She punched the Chinese Prince in the mouth.

He screamed in pain and let go of her, causing Elizabeth to take off up the stairs and to her room. Eugene and Rapunzel witnessed the attack and they both looked at each other with concern and headed up to see if their daughter was okay. Well...Eugene did anyways. Rapunzel stayed behind to heal the young man with her magical tears and to also apologize on behalf of her daughter.

Rapunzel inwardly sighed to herself. It was going to be a long night.

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**So I only included Ariel, Belle and Mulan because I figured they were all in the same time period as Rapunzel...actually Tiana is in the 30's but I put her in because I like her... so there :P**

**Anyways, Read and Review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**This is an AU Tangled story  
Disclaimer: Unfortunatly I don't own it :(**

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Eugene and Rapunzel carefully opened the door to their daughters room and found her thrown across her bed, sobbing into her pillow. Pascal sat besides her, flashing a miserable shade of blue. He sympathetically patted her arm and turned to see the royal couple in the room. He chirped and scattered off the bed and down into his hole in the wall.

"Liz, is everything okay?" Eugene asked, sitting down on his daughters bed.

"Elizabeth, what happened?" Rapunzel added.

The young princesses crying ceased and she raised herself from her pillows to look up at her parents. They had concern written all over them...well Eugene also had a look of amusement on his face. He had seen her punch the prince and although it was inappropriate, he was proud of her fighting abilities.

"I...I just didn't like what Prince Chen was doing," Princess Elizabeth said.

"What was he doing? Did he hurt you?" Eugene asked, his protective side showing.

"No. I just...I don't like them! Any of them! Why are you wanting me to marry? I'm too young!" Elizabeth exclaimed.

Rapunzel bit her lip and furrowed her brows. Her daughter had a valid point, but it was a royal law. She had to get her daughter to see the importance of it. Didn't she want to rule a kingdom one day?

"Elizabeth, sometimes we have to make sacrifices in order to do what's right for our kingdoms. Suppose a King or Queen pass away and the prince is still single? Suppose some monarch takes over and turns the kingdom into a land of despair? Would you be willing to let your selfishness be the reason that one of the neighbouring kingdoms goes into turmoil?" Rapunzel asked.

Elizabeth wiped her tears as she pondered her mothers questions. No, she didn't want that to happen. But why her? Why must she be the one to choose a husband? There were plenty other beautiful princesses who would be willing to marry a fine prince.

"Okay mother, you're right," Elizabeth said.

Rapunzel smiled. "I know I am."

"Of course you are. Now, let's go say sorry to Prince Chen, shall we?" Eugene asked, holding out his hand for his daughter to take.

Giving up, Elizabeth took his hand and followed her parents back down into the ballroom. Prince Chen was sitting in a chair wiping away the rest of the blood that had escaped from his nose.

"Well I hope you're here to apologize," Prince Chen spoke haughtily as Princess Elizabeth approached.

Princess Elizabeth felt anger boil inside her, but she held her tongue. What a pompus jerk!

"I am indeed sorry for my actions. I don't know what came over me," Elizabeth apologized.

She didn't really mean it. In her defense, the prince deserved what was coming to him. He shouldn't have treated her so roughly.

"Apology accepted. But I'm afraid that I cannot continue being around you. You're too reckless," He said.

Now that caused some anger on Eugenes part and he was about to explode when Rapunzel intervened.

"I'm sorry everyone, but the rest of tonight will be canceled. Good-night everyone!" Rapunzel announced and with that, she dragged her husband and daughter back upstairs.

After changing into her nightgown, Elizabeth settled back into bed when her father walked in. He had on his nightwear as well and he had a weary look on his face.

'Liz, I love you and all, but you can't go punching people willy nilly. As much as I enjoyed watching you deck the prince for his actions...don't do it again," Eugene explained.

"I'm sorry father," Elizabeth apologized.

Eugene smiled down at his daughter and pulled out a book from behind him.

"So...how about a bed time story? You can't be too old for that, can you?" He asked.

"Never," She replied, smiling.

Sitting in the chair beside her bed, Eugene began reading her yet another tale of Flynnagen Rider. After the story, Eugene yawned and stretched.

"The End. Good night Liz," Eugene said and pecked his daughter on the cheek.

"Good night father."

After he left, Elizabeth lay in her bed staring up at the roof. She kept thinking over Prince Chens words about her being reckless. She kept thinking about punching him and how good it felt, not feeling guilty in the slightest. She thought about how trapped she felt in the palace and how she had to choose who to marry. She didn't want this at all. She knew that she was being selfish, but she didn't want to be forced into a marriage.

Getting out of bed, the young princess looked out her window and found a guard standing below it. She had to get out of here. She had to escape from being forced into marriage. But how?

She found the book that her father read still sitting on the chair. Grabbing it, she opened the book and found illustrations in it of what depicted to be Flynnagen Rider. He sure was handsome, just like her father. The Flynnagen Rider in the book wore a pair of tan pants with a white shirt and green vest over top with a satchel hanging off of his shoulders. Eugene had an outfit similar to that, she remembered seeing it in his closet. He said it was for sentimental value. Elizabeth shook her head. She couldn't wear her fathers old clothes! They would be too big for her...but she could make her own.

The young princess headed over to her wardrobe and pulled out all of her dresses until she came upon her casual clothes which she usually wore for riding her horse. The pants were a light beige color with straight legs and she pulled out a long sleeved collared forest green shirt that brought out the color in her hair. A dark brown vest completed her riding outfit. She pulled out her riding boots and she quickly changed into them.

The boots went over her pant legs and once she looked into her mirror, Elizabeth gave a small gasp. She looked like a new person. The outfit shaped her figure perfectly...it made her look sort of foxy. Then she frowned at her hair. Her brown hair was so long, she had to shake it out of her face to get a clear vision. It draped past her shoulder in a wavy manner and she decided that she hated it. Long hair was a pain anyways.

Heading for her vanity, the princess found a pair of her cutting sheers that she used to trim her hair once in a while. Opening the sheers, she grabbed a chunk of her hair just below the nape of her neck and closed her eyes. Suddenly, her hair felt lighter and she opened her eyes. Her hair was now short and it sprang up in a spiky way. It was like her mothers hairstyle when it was ridden of it's golden locks.

Satisfied, the young princess went back to her bed and tied all of her sheets together. She headed for the window and found the guard still there.

"Ugh! I hate guards," She frowned.

At this point, pascal came scittering into her room and blinked hard. He thought that there was someone else in her room, but seeing the slim figure, pascal got a bad feeling about this. He lept onto her shoulders, causing the princess to jump slightly.

"Oh, its just you pascal. Can you do me a favor?" She asked the chameleon.

Pascal chirped in acknowledgement.

"Can you go down to that guard and stick your tongue in his ear or something? Make him mad," She explained.

Pascal looked at her with an unamused face. Had the princess gone crazy? Why did she want him to play pranks on the guard? Seeing the tied up bed sheets, his little brain clicked together the pieces of this confusing puzzle. She wanted to leave the palace!

He blew a raspberry at her, saying no.

"Oh come on pascal, I just want to go for a walk without anyone seeing me. You should know that I need to this after what happened at the ball," Elizabeth explained, letting fake tears run down her face.

Frowning, Pascal scittered out of the window and did as he was told. The guard yelped, grabbed his ear and saw Pascal. He went to go chase off the chameleon before creating more problems. Seeing her opportunity, Elizabeth threw the tied up sheets out save for a part of it which she tied up. She then made her descent out of the window and she ran off to the stables.

Wait, she couldn't do that. Maximus would be there and she knew how smart that horse was. He was almost like a hunting dog and he would easily find her. Turning away from the stables, Elizabeth saw the open forest before her. She was going to do this! She was finally going to be getting away from the palace Taking her chance, she picked up her pace and ran off into the deepness of the forest.

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**And done! **

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	5. Chapter 5

**This is an AU second gen Tangled Story. Thanks everyone who's been reading and reviewing so far.**

**On with the story!**

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Waking up the following morning, Rapunzel rubbed sleep out of her eyes and the sun spread across the bed. Stumbling out of bed, the Queen Consort headed over to the pot chamber and took her time taking care of her appearance. She brushed out her long brown hair until it gleamed and she changed into a simple cream and purple dress.

Eugene was still in bed, dead to the world. Looking at her husband, Rapunzel giggled. His mouth was hanging slightly open with drool dribbling down his chin. She went over to wake him up, but decided against it when she realized how cute he looked even after so many years together. She instead put on her slippers and made her way to her daughter's room to wake her up for breakfast.

Opening Elizabeth's door, Rapunzel immediately noticed that something was wrong. The first thing she saw, was long brown hair laying on the floor by her daughters vanity.

"What happened here?" Rapunzel asked herself.

Coming further into the room, Rapunzel gasped. Hanging out the window, was her daughters bed sheets. She quickly ran to the bed to make sure her eyes didn't deceive her. The bed was empty!

"Elizabeth? Elizabeth?" Rapunzel called out, heading for the open window.

Pascal came skittering out of his hole and climbed onto Rapunzels shoulder. He flashed a melancholy blue and snuggled close to Rapunzel. He was telling her something.

"She's gone? Why? Pascal, where did she go?" Rapunzel asked.

Pascal just shrugged and blew out his tongue. Elizabeth never said anything to him that would give her worried mother a clue about her whereabouts. Rapunzel worried. She must have been so humiliated about what happened last night that she ran away. Quickly, Rapunzel ran out of the room and back to hers.

"Eugene! Eugene wake up!" She called out, shaking her husbands shoulders.

The former thief mumbled something and tossed in bed. Rapunzel let out an exasperated sigh. She had to wake him up somehow.

"Eugene! Elizabeth is gone," Rapunzel announced.

Well that did it. Eugene bolted out of bed, sitting upright.

"Gone? What do you mean she's gone?" He groggily asked, stumbling out of bed and snatching his trousers.

Slipping into his pants, Eugene raced down the hall to his daughter's room, not caring that he was shirtless in the middle of the royal palace. Reaching her room, Eugene shoved the doors opened and saw the evidence inciting his daughters departure.

"No no no-no no, this is bad, this is very, very bad. Why did she leave? I mean come on! The ball wasn't THAT bad...was it?" He asked.

"We have to find her. She could be in trouble. There's bad men out there and if they find out she's a royal..." Rapunzel stopped what she was doing, fearing the doom that would follow if she said it out loud.

Eugene came over to Rapunzel and wrapped her in his arms in a comforting embrace.

"Hey, it'll be alright. We'll call out a search for her and hopefully someone will find her," Eugene reassured.

Rapunzel looked up at him and an idea flitted into her mind.

"Eugene, do you think we should carry on tradition?" She asked.

Eugene smiled down at her.

"That would be a wonderful idea Goldie. Come on, let's go tell your parents what's been going on," Eugene replied.

Taking his hand, Rapunzel went with him down to The King and Queen to break the news to them.

* * *

Elizabeth woke up to feeling the warm sun hit her mop of short brown hair. Looking around, Elizabeth was slightly confused about her whereabouts. She was lying in a nest made of grass and leaves in the forest of Corona.

"Oh yeah, I remember now," She mumbled to herself and smiled.

Getting to her feet, the young princess stretched her muscles and grabbed her satchel. She headed deeper into the forest until she came upon a small river stream. She scooped water into her hands and splashed it onto her face, sending her into a fit of shivers. That water was so cold, it woke her up completely.

Drying off using the sun, the young princess looked around the forest. She smiled to herself, taking in her freedom from the palace walls. What was she going to do today to celebrate her freedom? Still walking around in the forest, she soon came out of it until she came across a wooden bridge and a path. The path lead down to a small shack with a duck sign on it.

"The Snuggly Duckling? That's an odd name for a shack. Maybe they have food there," She thought to herself and approached the shack.

Opening the doors to the place, she gasped at the sight. Inside the place were ruffians and thugs. They were big men with tattoos and replacement body parts. One man had a hook hand. Mustering up her courage, the small teenaged girl dressed as her heroine made her way to the counter.

Behind the counter, was the man with the metal hook hand. He looked her up and down with curiosity and for a moment, Elizabeth regretted leaving the palace. Was he thinking lustful thoughts about her?

"Say, you remind me of someone I know. You look pretty familiar," The hook handed man said.

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows with curiosity. Did he know her father?

"Yeah, you do remind us of a certain thief...what was his name Hookhand?" Another man called out.

This man was large in stature and he had a goiter and a big nose along with a reddish complexion.

"Oh yeah, you DO look familiar. Flynn Riders kid right? Yeah, you do have his looks," Hookhand replied.

Hearing the name Flynn Rider, the other thugs came to surround the young teenager. Elizabeth shrunk down in a defense stance, assuming that they held a grudge against her father. When they didn't do anything to her, she relaxed in her seat.

"What are you doing way out here? Shouldn't you be in the palace?" Hookhand asked her.

"Uh...well you see..." Elizabeth started.

"Maybe you wanted to know what it was like for your father. Boy did he have it rough," Another man, Vladimer called out.

"I wouldn't doubt it. You see, I've always dreamed what it would be like to leave my palace and to explore the world. I just wanted a chance to get out. My father read me The Tales of Flynnagen Rider every night and I always wanted to be like him. It's always been my dream to be just like him," Elizabeth explained.

"Oh we know all about dreams, don't we fellas?" Hookhand asked, making his way to the piano.

"We sure do!" The Snuggly Duckling gang agreed.

Hookhand struck a few melancholy chords on the piano.

(To the tune of I've got a dream, but slower and with a sadder feel)

**_I yearned to be a concert pianist and finally got my wish But somewhere along the line, I got in a muddle. So here I am right now, back in the Snuggly Duckling Yes along time ago, I had a dream._**

**_(He had a dream, he had a dream) See I use to be amazing down the way Though I do like like pounding key notes And belting at the top of my lungs I should have known my dream would end one day. _**

Big Nose walked up to Hookhand and put a compassionate hand on the big mans shoulder. Hookhand looked like he was about to cry, but he held it in and continued to play the piano. Elizabeth scrutinized the actions that surrounded her and she was curious as to why big burly men were singing.

**_I've got scars and lumps and bruises Plus something here that oozes And let's not even mention my complexion But despite my extra toes and my goiter and my nose I really wanted to make a love connection._**

**_Yes I had a very special lady, and rowed in a row boat down the stream But she saw me as a disgusting blighter And not a lover, but a fighter Yes a long time ago, I had a dream_**

**_(He had a dream, he had a dream) And I thought one day romance would reign supreme But my face left people screaming And I'm no longer a child dreaming Because a long time ago I had a dream._**

**_We had a dream, we had some dreams But they were crushed down along the way We were really good at something And all enjoyed the blessings, But somewhere down the way We lost our dreams._**

The song ended and Elizabeth took this moment to observe the men in the bar. While they had been singing, she realized that these were the men that her parents told her stories about. Hookhand had played at a few of her birthdays when she was younger. Atilla had made her the birthday cupcakes and Ulf had been her entertainer. She had also seen Bignose there too with his date.

So here they were, down on their luck all because they made mistakes along the way of living their dreams. She was happy that she was living her dream, and she wanted to help them feel beter about themselves. Not only did she want to help them feel better, she was also needing to get going and eat something. She ordered some pancakes and as she ate, some words of wisdom came to her mind. Finishing her breakfast, she hdeaded for the piano and sat by Hookhand.

**_I've got a dream, I've got a dream I just want to be someone I want to be So here I am right now right outside the walls And living life as best can be_**

**_I've got a dream, I've got a dream And I know that you're all dreamers too So don't you fret and don't you frown Because somewhere deep inside You have a dream, yes you have got some dreams._**

The Snuggly Duckling gang all looked up at the young princess, entranced by her singing voice. Not only that, but she was sending each of them a message of hope. It somehow boosted them up and they joined her.

**_Yes way down deep inside we have some dreams!_**

**_YAH!_**

They burst into applause and clapped for Elizabeth. Elizabeth felt a surge of adrenaline rush through her body asshe got off the stage. She grabbed her satchel and was ready to leave when each gang member stopped her, thanking her for her hopeful message. Bignose vowed to after a new woman who would love him for who he was. Hookhand was going to continue playing piano and Atilla was going to go down into the kingdom and see about opening a bakery.

"Good-bye everyone! Good luck finding your new dreams," Elizabeth waved to them.

They cheered for her as she left the pub. Deep in the corner of the pub, two identical men had been watching the whole scenario.

"She sure is familiar, isn't she Tyson?" The one said to his companion.

"Those clothes look a bit familiar too. Should we follow her?" Tyson asked.

The first one shook his head.

"Ever since we escaped the castle during that riot that Flynn had caused, we should be still laying low. But if we follow her, let's play it safe," His friend said.

Tyson nodded and the two identical men got out of their chairs and headed out of the pub, keeping a safe distance from Elizabeth.

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**EEK! Already the fun is going to begin.**

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	6. Chapter 6

**I don't own Tangled...If I did, I'd be chatting it up with Zachary Levi and Mandy Moor :(**

**A:N/ If you still haven't put out an OC for Elizabeths love interest, I may default to giving her Stockholm Sydrome, and I don't want to do that. So please fill out the form in the review box. :)**

**Read and Review!**

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"SHE DID WHAT?" King Frederich bellowed.

"She left the palace! She told me how she longed to go outside of Corona and she really did it. I told you that we should have doubled the guards at night!" Eugene argued.

"And how would that have been any better? You've been teaching her your old tricks. It wouldn't have made a difference if there were more guards anyways!" King Frederich yelled.

"Father, Eugene please. Yelling at each other isn't going to bring Elizabeth back. Father, shouldn't we inform the kingdom? Maybe we can use the floating lights again in hope that she'll come back," Rapunzel explained.

Both men went silent as they contemplated the idea. Queen Eleanor cleared her throat and spoke up.

"It sounds like a good idea, Rapunzel. I take it you have also been telling her the story behind the lights?" She asked.

"Oh yes, she never tires of hearing that story...almost as much as hearing The Tales of Flynnagen Rider," Rapunzel replied, glaring at her husband.

"HEY! I said I was sorry!" Eugene exclaimed.

"Sorry isn't good enough to get our daughter back!" Rapunzel yelled, and immediatly regretted her words.

Staring at his wife in shock, Eugene wanted to yell even more and curse whoever was making their lives miserable for all that was happening. He wanted to yell at Rapunzel for saying those words. Instead, he didn't and he gathered his wife in his arms and gently rocked her.

"I know that you're upset with me about all of this. I am sorry for what's happened to Elizabeth. I promise that we will find her," Eugene said.

Rapunzel pulled away from him and wiped her tears off her face. She gave him a small smile and turned to her parents.

"Let's go announce this to the kingdom and release the lanterns later tonight," Rapunzel announced.

* * *

Elizabeth continued making her way through the large forest. She was getting tired and needed a place to rest for the afternoon. And maybe she was going crazy, but she felt like she was being followed. She kept looking behind her but found nothing behind her. She shook her head, thinking that maybe she really was tired.

A rustling in the bushes shook her out of her paranoid thoughts and she went alert. Maybe something...or someone WAS following her. She pulled out her dagger from her sheath and took a defense position.

"Alright you ruffians, show yourself!" She ordered.

She got no response at first, but then a small furry brown creature popped out of the bushes. It was a small rabbit. Elizabeth relaxed.

"I guess I am a bit jumpy," She thought to herself.

Shrugging, she kept making her way through the forest when her sensitive ears picked up something else. Voices...low male voices. She didn't know what they were saying, but she figured that it wasn't good. Why talk in low voices if you're out in the forests where no one can hear you? Unless that person knows that your there too and they're talking about you?

Elizabeth didn't dare look back to see who those voices belonged to. She didn't dare run in order to have them chase her, whoever THEY were. Instead, she casually started making her way further. Then she remembered her satchal and what things she put in it. She had a small mirror in there. Taking it out subtly, Elizabeth looked busy making sure that her appearance looked okay. Then she turned the mirror ever so slightly and saw two men dressed up in outfits similar to hers, but they were darker in color and looked more menacing. They looked like twins. Both were tall and had red hair. Where had she seen these two faces before?

She didn't want to answer that question. She got a bad feeling come from the two twins and without a second thought, she picked up her pace and ran deeper into the forest.

"HEY! Come back here!" The voices shouted.

No way! No freaking way was she going towards whatever evil force that those two held. She was going to get a way from them. Elizabeth came to a certain grove of trees and there was one tree that had fallen over a rock, concealing a hidden space behind it. Taking her chances, the princess dove inside the green leaves and into the empty space to hide from her pursuers. Seeing their shadows, she held her breath.

"Where did she go?" The one asked.

"She probably headed for the stream. We got to get to her before she goes back to her daddy and cries to him. If we can catch the princess, she's going to wish that she never left her home," The other explained.

"And what are we going to do with her again?" The one asked again.

"You idiot, I told you back at The Snuggly Duckling. We find the princess whos' dressed up like her father, we hold her captive and send a letter to Flynn demanding him to bring some money in order for us to release her. And when he comes, we'll kill him. It's the perfect revenge," He told his twin.

"Oh, cool. You're so smart Tyson," The one said.

"I know I am. Now come on Tyler, we got a princess to capture," Tyson said.

With that, they headed down to the river where they assumed that Elizabeth had gone to. Once they were gone, Elizabeth let out a sigh of relief, but also one of horror. These men...they knew her father? Why would they want to get revenge on him? What had he ever done to them? So many questions ran through her mind and Elizabeth shook her head to get rid of them. Her stomach growled loudly and she yawned. She really needed to rest.

She didn't want to leave her hiding place so she went further down from her hiding spot to see if there was another way out. Instead of finding more space, Elizabeths green eyes widened in fascination. In front of her was a tall brick tower that stood on it's own. A small stream was by the tower and she quickly went to it to drink from it. The water was surprisingly fresh and cold and it satisfied her thirst.

"What's a tower doing in the middle of the forest?" She asked herself.

She observed the tower and went around it, checking out the detailing on it. It was really old, probably dating back to the 14th Century. It was the 17th Century now and Elizabeth wondered what was with this tower before hand. Coming around the one side of the tower, she found an open space in it with a staircase leading upwards. Should she dare go up in a tower that was so old that it could be rat infested and ready to fall apart? Well it didn't look like it would fall apart, and she needed a place to hide. Maybe there was still food in there somewhere.

Taking her chances, Elizabeth ascended the staircase and went up to find herself in a room. The room was a mess and there was shards of glass lying around along with something long and dark.

"Is this...hair?" She asked herself and bent down to touch it.

It felt soft and smooth and it somewhat creeped Elizabeth out. What had happened in this room that caused so much hair to be here? Was someone murdered here?

Shaking her head, Elizabeth went to find some candles lying around and she lit them. There was enough candles to light the whole tower. Wow, someone had a lot of time on there hands.

"Well, I may a well find a place to sleep before I continue on with finding food," She thought to herself, yawning again.

She saw another staircase and ascended them. There were curtains hanging off of the walls and she pushed them aside to see what was there. There was two bedrooms. One looked dark red and black, the other purple and blue. She liked the purple room better. It looked like it was made for a princess. And being of noble blood made her want to sleep in that comfy purple bed. She didn't care what had been lying on it years before her. She was so tired. Coming into the purple room, she tossed herself onto the purple bed and found herself drifting off.

She never noticed that there was another figure in the room with her.

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**That's a creepy ending to the chapter if I say so myself. But you'll soon find out who's in there with her...if ya fill out the form.**

**Until next time**

**Queen_of_Red_Flames**


	7. Chapter 7

**This is an AU , second generation Tangled story**

**Disclaimer: Sorry...I don't own Tangled.**

**Hello fellow readers and followers, sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've been busy with other things and have had writers block. But no worries, I'm back now. Make sure to follow and favorite for more update emails.**

**Read and REVIEW!**

* * *

Rapunzel and Eugene stood on the terrace, facing the kingdom. They had both finished announcing the disappearance of their daughter and had a plan to bring her back. They had lit a paper lantern and released it into the sky, announcing that hopefully their daughter would see it and come home to them. They encouraged everyone to join them in the releasing of lanterns every night.

After the announcement, Rapunzel and Eugene headed back into the palace. Rapunzel sighed wearily and made her way to her daughters room. Upon arriving, she sat on her daughters soft green bed and covered her face with her hands. She had many mixed emotions about all of this.

Noticing his wifes' distress, Eugene sat down on the bed with her and wrapped his arm around her.

"Hey. are you alright?" He asked, concerned.

"Yes...No...Ugh, it's complicated," Rapunzel groaned.

Eugene thumbed her chin and brought her face up to look at him.

"Tell me what's wrong," He encouraged.

Rapunzel sighed and looked out the window, a distant look clouded over her green eyes.

"It's just reminding me of what happened all those years ago. I feel like I'm re-watching my life all over again, only this time it's happening to my daughter," Rapunzel explained, wiping away stray tears.

Eugene understood what was going through Rapunzels mind and he felt her pain. But then again, there was always a bright side to everything.

"Well look on the bright side, at least she wasn't kidnapped by a witch," He explained, hoping to change the mood.

Rapunzel looked up at her husband and felt some hope restore in her heart.

"That's a good point, Eugene. I just wish that she was home with us. I'm worried about what might happen to her. Suppose someone recognizes her and kidnaps her? Suppose they hold her for ransom? I can't imagine what awful things Elizabeth is going through," Rapunzel sighed.

Eugene furrowed his brows and pulled Rapunzel into his arms. He felt his own tears threaten to flow down his face, but he choked them back. He didn't want to think of the horrible things that could be happening to Elizabeth either. He had to be strong for everyone in his family.

He started to wish that he never told Elizabeth about his Flynn Rider day stories, putting ideas into her head. Wait...if he did put those stories in her head, wouldn't she be living them right now? Wouldn't she be off in the forests...

"Rapunzel, I got an idea of where Elizabeth might be. Go get dressed in some riding wear and let's head down for the stables," Eugene suggested.

"What's your idea?" Rapunzel asked, looking up at him.

Eugene just smiled...or rather, gave Rapunzel the smolder. Rapunzel got the hint and the two headed off to their chambers to change.

* * *

Elizabeth woke up to hear movement in the corner of the room she was sleeping in. Sitting up in the purple bed, she looked around to find the source of the noise. The room seemed empty.

"Huh, must have been a rat," She mumbled and stumbled out of bed.

Stretching, she grabbed her sword sheath and wrapped it back around her waist. She was hungry so she started scrounging around for scraps of food. She found nothing edible and her stomach growled.

"I guess I'll just have to leave and find some wild berries," She sighed and made her way back down the stairs.

Suddenly, she heard movement behind her again and she took out her sword and spun around. Her sword thrusted outward and clashed with another sword. The young princess gasped as she saw a figure in front of her...and not just any figure.

It was a young man, possibly three years her senior. He had a tan copmplexion with curly brown hair and warm blueish gray eyes. He had a lanky build but Elizabeth saw some pretty big muscles in his arms. He was wearing a pale blue shirt with a white vest over top and he had on a pair of beige pants with riding boots.

"Well, I never thought I'd see the day that a woman would brandish a sword," He spoke.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. He sounded pretty cocky about the fact that he was witnessing this 'abomination'. She kept her sword trained on him. Who was he? What was he doing here?

"If I were you, I wouldn't be talking that way. My father is a skilled swordsman and he taught me to fight," She explained.

The young man smiled with amusement and pulled his sword away from hers. He got into a fighting stance.

"Well then, why don't you enlighten me with your skills?" He asked.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes again and sheathed her sword. She didn't have time for this.

"I don't know why I'm arguing with a perfect stranger...er...not that you're perfect. No! You seem like a complete ego maniac actually," Elizabeth stated, seeming flustered.

The young man laughed and sheathed his sword also. He extended his hand for Elizabeth to take.

"My name is Jaxton, but my friends call me Jax," He introduced.

Elizabeth looked at him with skepticism. Why was she here again talking to this man? Was he an enemy? But what if he wasn't? What was he doing in her forests anyways? Reluctantly, she grasped his hand and firmly shook it.

"My name is Liz," She said.

A first name basis seemed like the right thing to do. She didn't need him knowing that she was really Princess Elizabeth Fitzherbert. That would raise some questions and then she would NEVER get rid of this guy.

"Liz? Like short for Elizabeth? Or is it just Liz? Or maybe you just don't want me to know your real name?" He peppered her with questions.

She spoke too soon. Rolling her eyes, Elizabeth made her way for the staircase in the floor and she headed down. Jax followed after her.

"Hey, I mean no offense. Really, but what is a lady like you doing way out here?" He asked as they came to the outdoors.

Elizabeth ignored him and headed for the small stream where she splashed water onto her face to fully wake her up. Maybe this was a dream that she was having. Maybe this stranger wasn't really there and she was just talking to herself. Why was he talking to her anyways? Most men she knew turned tail at the sight of her. No she wasn't ugly, she just had an aura that said 'I hate boys, leave me alone'.

"So what, you're just going to give me the silent treatment? I know we just met and everything, but isn't it pretty rude to ignore someone?" He pointed out.

They came to the fallen down tree that had leaves draped over the rocks like a curtain. Pulling them away from her to leave, Elizabeth sighed and turned around.

"Look, I don't know you and I definitely don't want to talk to you. I don't even know why you were in that tower but I'm sure not going to be asking questions. Let's just pretend we never met and go our seperate ways, deal?" She asked as they exited the curtain of leaves.

Jax sighed to himself and followed after her. He still didn't know why a beautiful woman like her was out in the forest anyways. She could get hurt, if not worst. Besides, she looked familiar to him. It seemed best to stick together, in his opinion. Besides, he was captivated by her personality. Not many women in this century were very strong.

Coming up to a berry bush, Elizabeth started plucking handful. When she was satisfied, she went to sit on the grass and eat her portion. Before the first berry reached her mouth, Jax snatched her morsel away.

"What are you stupid? These are poison berries!" He exclaimed.

Elizabeth looked back at the berries and her brain clicked in recognition at their distintive color. He was right! Ugh, she was usually very observant. What was wrong with her?

"Sorry. I didn't know what I was thinking. I didn't have time to pack food in my satchel," She stuttered.

Jax extended his hand to help her up from the ground, but she slapped it away and got to her feet on her own accord. Sighing, Elizabeth looked at him and saw that he had his own satchel. She gesutered to it.

"I suppose you wouldn't have anything, would you?" She asked.

Jax feigned shock and put his hand to his heart.

"I thought you didn't talk to strangers. Besides, you were being pretty rude to me, so why should I suddenly be to generous?" He asked.

He had a point. Elizabeth was pretty rude to him. That was a bad first impression.

"Look, I'm sorry. I just don't like guys," She confessed.

Again, he feigned hurt.

"Well I'm sorry you feel that way. Unfortunatly I don't have food. But there is a townhouse close by that we can steal from," Jax said and pointed towards the south.

Well if she was playing the part of Flynn Rider, she may as well live up to his name.

"Do you know where to start?" She asked as they stared heading for the town houses.

"Don't worry, I've been there plenty of times. Just watch and learn," He said, flashing a cocky grin.

Elizabeth sighed and rolled her eyes, but she said nothing. Maybe she could learna few tricks or two from him.

They came to the town houses and came to a small market that was happening in the center. The two looked around and Elizabeth felt her mouth water. There were freshly baked tarts, breads and fruits. There was also some meat morsels.

"I don't know where to start," She thought to herself.

"Stay here and watch me work," Jax said and headed for a vendor that was selling apples.

He leaned over the counter and started talking to the owner; a young girl who appeared to be Elizabeths age. He smiled at the woman and he made her giggle. While he distracted the young lady with whatever charms he was using, Jax took that moment to snatch two apples and sublty put them in his satchel.

Elizabeth watched with amusement and she felt herself smile. This guy seemed so interesting. She wondered what he said to that girl. Then again, she could just picture it now.

Jax walked back up to Elizabeth and smiled cockily. He opened his satchel and let her take a peek inside.

"Told you I could do it. Now let's see you try and swipe something. You probably have just as much charm as I do. I'll bet this whole hating guys thing is just an act," He grinned.

Oh, she would show him alright. Looking around, Elizabeth found the tart vendor and made her way up. Inside the vendor was a man in his late 20's. He had a scar run down his left cheek in a cruel manner. Elizabeth overlooked that and smiled at the man. She really did like his blue tunic.

"I love your tunic. Is it handmade?" She asked.

The man looked up from his treats and smiled at her. But it wasn't a smile that made Elizabeth comfortable.

"Why yes it is. My mother made it for me actually. So what can I get for you, sweet thing? He asked.

As uncomfortable the young man made her feel, Elizabeth hid it well and she flashed him a sickly sweet smile.

"Nothing much. i actually just saw you from off the distance and I thought to myself how cute you look," She replied.

The young man seemed flattered and he leaned close over his counter. He looked into her eyes and Elizabeth saw her opportunity. Her hands reached down to grab the tarts and she shoved them in her stachel.

"I suppose you wouldn't want to go out with a girl like me, would you?" She asked.

The young man pulled away at her bold question and he looked uncomfortable. He looked past her shoulder but Elizabeth brushed it off.

"HEY! What are you doing with Kai?" A womans voice shrilled.

Elizabeth turned around to see a beautiful redheaded woman. Only, she dind't look to beautiful with a face as red as her hair and a scowl on her face. Sheesh, what got that womans corset in a knot?

"N...nothing. I was just having a friendly chat," Elizabeth admitted.

The redheaded woman looked down at Elizabeths satchel and grabbed it. Elizabeth reacted and grabbed at it, trying to pull it away from the woman.

"You manipulated my boyfriend you little wench. Trying to steal his tarts huh?" The woman accused.

"Give me...my satchel." Elizabeth demanded through clenched teeth.

The woman let go and Elizabeth fell down from the opposing force. Her satchel fell to the ground and poured at the contents that were in there. Her comb, mirror, a book, dagger and the two tarts were in there.

"Thief! This woman is a thief!" Kai accused as Elizabeth put the contents back in her bag, including the tarts.

Getting to her feet, Elizabeth was about to make a run for it when the woman gripped her arm tightly and dragged her over to a guard. Before they even got close enough, Elizabeth slammed the heel of her palm into the womans jaw and the woman was forced to let go.

Taking her chance, Elizabeth ran as fast as her long legs would carry her and she met up with Jax and the entrance to the town houses. They both ran back into the forest as they heard guards run after them.

"Quick, up this tree," Jax said as he came to a big oak.

He got to his knees and brought his two hands together for Elizabeth to step on to get the boost up to the first branch. Trusting him, Elizabeth jumped and placed her left foot in his palms. He got off his knees and threw his hands up, releasing his grip on her. Elizabeth flew up and outstretched her arms. She grabbed the thick branch in front of her and placed her feet on the branch just below her.

Looking down from her perch, she saw Jax climb up after her. Just as he reached her, the two looked down and saw the guards pass by them. When they saw them go by a second time to return to their posts, the two laughed; both out of breath.

"Wow, I never thought I'd say this, but that was fun," Elizabeth admitted.

"Good, I'm glad I could get you to try it out," Jax replied.

The two grew silent and Elizabeth looked at her strange companion. She felt something in her heart swell as she looked at his handsome face. What was this she was feeling? It was so foreign to her and yet it felt so wonderful. She never bothered to get to know any man and let them see past her princess demeanor. Jax was the first guy she encountered to see past her and into the person she truly wanted to be. She never told him why she was out in the forests or anything personal, but it didn't matter.

Jax looked back at her and had many things rush through his mind. He hadn't known a woman quite like her and he was enchanted by it. There was something about her that he liked and he didn't even care about knowing why she was out in the forest.

The silence was broken when Elizabeth gave a cough.

"Uh, we should probably get down from the tree now," She said.

"Yeah, good idea," He replied and they climbed down.

As the two headed off to find some more food, both failed to notice that The Stabbington Brothers were close behind.

"Great, now there's a guy with her," Tyson grumbled.

"Patience brother. All good things to those who wait," Tyler reminded.

* * *

**AND DONE THIS CHAPTER! WOHOO! I hope you all realize how much I love you. It took me two days to write this up!**

**Read and Review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: If I owned Tangled...Rapunzel would be out of the picture and I would have Eugene all to myself...I mean...what?**

**Read, Review, follow and favorite!**

* * *

Rapunzel and Eugene rode their horses into the forest in silence. A million things ran through Rapunzels' mind as she worried about her daughter. Was she in that tower all by herself? What if someone else was hiding out in it? Perhaps a killer or a thief? What if her daughter was lying dead in a ravine somewhere? Rapunzel shook her head to shake the disturbing images out of it. She couldn't be worrying, not now anyways. She had to find her daughter.

"Elizabeth!" Rapunzel called out.

Eugene jumped in fright at the sudden noise coming from his wife. He held his hand over his heart to prevent it from leaping out of his chest.

"Don't do that! You scared me!" Eugene warned.

"Sorry," Rapunzel cringed.

After a few seconds of silence, the two came upon the familiar curtain of leaves and headed inside. There standing before them, was the same tower that had kept Rapunzel closed off from the world for eighteen years. Rapunzel felt a wave of nausea overcome her and she was about ready to collapse from her horse when Eugene sidled up beside her and held her tightly.

"Woah, easy there. Rapunzel, are you sure you want to go in there with me? Maybe you should wait out here," Eugene suggested.

Rapunzel slightly pushed him away.

"No. I am going in there with you," She demanded.

Eugene gave a slight smile as they got closer to the tower. Dismounting their horses, the two walked around the tower until they came to the section in the wall that had the staircase. Rapunzel hesitated at the foot of the steps and her breathing grew heavy. Did she dare enter the same tower that Gothel kept her hidden in? What if Gothel wasn't dead at all and she was in there right now?

"Rapunzel, are you sure about this?" Eugene asked.

Rapunzel looked up at him with uncertainty in her eyes. But they disappeared when she thought about the life of her daughter.

"Let's do this," Rapunzel said and she ascended the staircase.

Coming into the tower, Rapunzel and Eugene found it empty. The tower was still in the same state as it was years ago. The broken glass still lay on the floor and the long brown hair was still there.

"Okay, that...is disgusting," Eugene pointed at the hair.

Rapunzel giggled nervously at the sight of her old hair sprawled out all over the tower. Eugene was right...it was disgusting. Ignoring it, Rapunzel ascended the next flight of stairs that led to the bedrooms. She didn't dare go into Gothels' old room, so she looked in her old room. A wave of nostalgia overcame her and Rapunzel looked around the room. It was pretty empty.

"Hmm, I guess she's not here," Rapunzel thought to herself.

Eugene searched Gothels room but found no evidence indicating that his daughter was there. He was about to leave the room when something caught his eyes in the corner of the room. Heading over there, Eugene bent down and saw a small white sash with red on it. Hey, he knew those colors. Weren't those the colors of their neighbouring kingdom? What was it called again?

"Rapunzel, I found something," Eugene called out as he came out of the room.

"What is it?" She asked as she approached him.

Eugene held up the white and red sash and Rapunzel took on a look of confusion.

"I've never seen that in here before. But that belongs to The Kingdom of Galaekor. I was there on that business trip a few weeks back. The King and Queen were distressed because their son was missing," Rapunzel explained.

"Huh, well I guess we now know where he is," Eugene concluded.

"Yes and suppose Prince Jaxton has found Elizabeth? Maybe he's taking her back to the castle as we speak," Rapunzel said, beaming with hope.

"Let's go and find out," Eugene spoke and the two left the tower.

* * *

As night fell, Elizabeth and Jax made it back to a small cave and they lit a fire. Elizabeth emptied her satchel and smiled widely at the treats and treasures that she snagged that day. She felt pretty accomplished and she had Jax to thank for it. Oh yeah...she hadn't thanked him yet. Looking at the young prince, Elizabeth felt a lump rise in her throat. The light of the fire glowed off his face and she couldn't help but think how well-defined his jaw line was.

Jax felt her staring at him and he turned to look at her. He scrunched his face with skepticism.

"Why are you staring at me?" He asked.

Elizabeth didn't realize she was staring and she felt her face grow hot...or was it the fire that was doing that?

"Uh, I just want to thank you for teaching me to do this. I've never met anyone quite like you," She confessed.

"Well thank-you. I've never met anyone like you either," Jax replied with a warm smile.

Elizabeth smiled and silence fell between the two again. Jax took this moment to empty his satchel and divide the bread he stole between the two of them. As the two ate in silence, Elizabeth racked her brains to think of something to say. Luckily, Jax beat her to it.

"So Liz, what made you want to become a thief?" He asked, catching her off guard.

"Uhh well, it's kind of silly really." She said.

Jax seemed interested in knowing her story and he scooted closer; his hands on the side of his face in a 'ready to listen' position.

Elizabeth gave a chuckle and began to tell him.

"There was this story that my dad would read to me every night. The Tales of Flynnagen Rider, a swash buckling rogue, richest man alive and charming with the ladies. Not that he'd brag about it of course. Anyways, just the whole idea of Flynnagen Rider fascinates me and I've always wanted to just be free from my dull life to find adventure. So when the opportunity came, I took it. And now that I'm living it, I don't want to go back to my normal life," She explained.

"Huh, sounds interesting." Jax replied.

"Yeah. So what about you? Why are you out gallivanting in the forests?" Elizabeth asked.

"Uh, well..." Jax started, feeling nervous all of a sudden.

Did he want to tell her that he was a prince? She had told him that she had a disliking for princes' and he didn't want to mess up the chance of never seeing her again. It was best not to tell her the truth.

"Well I ran away from home. My father is abusive and my mother doesn't seem to care. They both forced me to do things that I didn't want to do, so I left." He lied...somewhat.

Elizabeth nodded and finished her dinner. She stretched her arms to get rid of the tense muscles in her back. As she stretched, Jax just stared with his mouth opened slightly at her. She was...wow...she was gorgeous. Even that figure of hers drove him wild. He wanted to just kiss her already, but he didn't want to freak her out.

"When you're done drooling like a puppy, you can take the first watch," Elizabeth smirked.

Realizing that he indeed WAS staring at her, Jax shut his mouth and got to his feet.

"Yeah, sure. Good-night Liz." He said.

A silence filled the air for a moment before Elizabeth spoke up. She didn't know what possessed her to tell him what she was about to say, but she said it anyways.

"Elizabeth."

"What?" Jax asked, turning back to her.

"My name is Elizabeth." She answered.

It did suit her much better. It was definitely a beautiful name.

"Well, good-night Elizabeth." Jax said and left the cave.

At around mid-night, Jax came back into the cave to wake up the teenager. He lightly touched her shoulder and she woke up with a start.

"Sorry. It's your turn now," He said.

"Okay." She mumbled and got to her feet, stretching in the process.

She headed out of the cave when she suddenly felt a wave of paranoia overcome her. What if those redheaded men were out here still looking for her? She had forgotten all about them up until now, where she was all alone. She was alone outside where danger was around the corner. Elizabeth slowly crept back inside the cave to where Jax was huddled up by the fire.

"Are you okay?" He asked, noticing her worried expression.

"Can I tell you something?" She asked.

"Sure."

Elizabeth took a deep breath before speaking up again.

"When I first came to the forests, I realized that someone has been following me. I hid from them and overheard them talking about how they wanted to get revenge on my father by kidnapping me. I don't know why they want revenge on him, but I'm guessing he knew them from a long time ago. I can't take the chance to be alone. I...Jax..." Elizabeth hesitated.

She felt her face grow hot again as she stared at the handsome nineteen year old in front of her. She must be going crazy, because she had the sudden urge to kiss him. Why was she feeling this way? She just met the guy. And yet, there was something about him that she liked.

"Elizabeth, it's okay. I'll protect you." Jax started.

Princess Elizabeth felt her heart slightly break as she heard those words. She thought that she didn't need protecting from anyone. But now that she remembered the dangers out in the forest, she didn't want to be too independent on herself. She needed...she needed him.

"I love you." Jax said all of a sudden.

Elizabeth looked up at him as he said those three words and she felt something creep into her heart. Jax leaned in close to the princess and for once, Elizabeth didn't feel violated by the space closing in between them. She didn't even feel violated as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pull her close. And she definitely didn't have the urge to punch him...when their lips met.

Princess Elizabeth realized that she was kissing a boy and that didn't even bother her one bit. She felt as if he had broken down the walls that she had built up to ever keep from getting hurt. She suddenly didn't hate boys anymore. Well... at least this boy.

They broke the kiss and looked at each other with a look of passion in their eyes.

"I love you too," Elizabeth whispered to Jax.

He smiled back at her and Elizabeth felt that lump return to her throat. He really had a gorgeous smile. Tenderly, they pressed their lips together again and enjoyed the feeling that they both shared.

Outside of the cave, The Stabbington Brothers watched the whole scene unfold.

"What do we do with him?" Tyson asked.

"Well, I'm sure two kingdoms wouldn't mind paying ransom for two missing royals, would they?" Tyler asked.

* * *

**PHEW! Done and done! Awww, I loved writing this chapter so much. I worked hard on it so you guys better love me ;)**

**Read and Review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**This is an AU second generation Tangled fic  
Disclaimer: I still don't own Tangled...or Zachary Levi :(**

* * *

When Rapunzel and Eugene came back to the Castle when night started to fall, they were dead on their feet. Both of them just wanted to crawl under the covers and go to sleep, but there was still much to be done. Coming into the Castle, they grew more discouraged when they asked the guards if Elizabeth had been returned home. The answer was no.

The royal couple finally came to the bedroom of Rapunzel's parents and walked in.

"Any luck?" King Frederich asked.

"None so far." Eugene reported.

The King lowered his head and shook it sadly. His wife approached him and put a hand on his shoulder to show her concern. She turned to Eugene and Rapunzel.

"Come, let's go down to the kitchen and make us a late night snack. I'm sure you two must be famished," Queen Eleanor suggested.

Both Eugene and Rapunzel scowled when they heard how loudly their stomachs growled from lack of food for the past two hours. Had it really been that long since they went into the forest to look for Elizabeth? Coming into the kitchen, the help stared in shock as the royal entered the kitchen. They never came down to make their own food!

"Well what are you staring at? Finish cleaning up and head on for bed." Queen Eleanor ordered.

Nodding, the servants scurried about to finish cleaning the kitchen for the night. Once they left, Rapunzel took out a cauldron and set it over the still burning fire.

"I'm making Hazel Nut soup. Gothel always told me it took away stress when one was under pressure," Rapunzel explained as she gathered the herbs.

"Uhh, are you sure about wanting to make that? I mean come on Rapunzel, you just mentioned Gothel!" Eugene pointed out.

Rapunzel stopped in her tracks and just smiled at Eugene.

"I know I did. But if it's one thing that I will always thank her for, is the medicines she showed me to make." Rapunzel replied.

Eugene sighed. He wasn't sure what to make of all of this. Ever since leaving the tower, Rapunzel had been really quiet and didn't want to bring up Gothel. But now, it's like she didn't even care. Eugene just figured she was just as stressed as he was. Having their daughter run away from home, finding out that she was most likely in that tower along with the prince probably made Rapunzel feel like she was watching her past life relive itself again.

Except one thing was different. The Stabbington Brothers hadn't been brought into this.

God, please let it stay that way.

* * *

Waking up as the sun was starting to rise, Elizabeth grumbled to herself for waking up so dang early. She hated it when she didn't sleep in. Feeling something heavy on her waist, Elizabeth turned to see Jax sleeping right by her; his arm around her in a protective manner.

Smiling, she leaned down and kissed him gently on the forehead then lifted his arm off of her to head out of the cave to go wash up by the stream. Stretching once she got to her feet, Princess Elizabeth grabbed her sword sheath and wrapped it around her waist. Heading out of the cave, she went up to the stream where she scooped water into her hands and splashed it onto her face. The cold water made her sputter and it instantly woke her up.

Suddenly, her sensitive ears picked up movement just up ahead of her. Her head snapped up to see what was there and she rose to her feet and took out her sword.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" She called out.

Silence.

Shrugging, Elizabeth turned around to head back into the cave when something suddenly popped out from the bushes behind her and tackled her to the ground.

"Ack!" She cried out as she landed roughly on her stomach.

She struggled as she felt heavier weight on top of her and two rough hands grab her wrists. Oh no...they found her.

"JAX! Jax, help!" Elizabeth cried.

She managed to fight off her attacker just long enough to roll on her back and come face to face with him. It was one of The Stabbington Brothers. His hair was a flaming red and a scar ran down his face. He smiled menacingly at her.

"It looks like you're going to be making us rich," He spoke up.

"Elizabeth?" Jax called out, coming out of the cave.

Tyson got Elizabeth to her feet and he pinned her arms behind her back, tying them up. Looking towards the cave, Elizabeth saw the other twin hiding just out of Jaxs' sight. She saw Jax start to head out of the cave.

"Jax, look out!" She warned.

Turning around, Jax saw Tyler coming at him. He quickly drew out his sword just as Tyler did and the metal clanged together as they got into a fighting stance. Elizabeth continued to fight off Tyson, but she was weak compared to him. Nevertheless, she continued to put up a fight.

"You know, the more you struggle, the more likely I'll kill you," Tyson explained, tightening his grip.

Growling, Elizabeth resisted fighting back. She didn't want to risk it. Looking over to Jax and Tyler sword fighting, she prayed that he would win against him and then challenge her captor. She and Tyson watched as Jax fought the other twin. They exchanged fighting blows and defense moves. Tyler finally took the upper hand and knocked the sword out of Jax's hand. He pointed his sword menacingly at the young man.

"It looks like your time is up," Tyler grinned.

Jax didn't give up. He pulled out his smaller dagger and swiftly clashed it against the sword, managing to knock it out of Tyler's' grip.

"Not quite," Jax said, pointing his small dagger at the bigger man.

Tyler looked at the young prince with amusement and advanced towards him. Jax jabbed his dagger towards the big redhead, but Tyler easily took it away from him. Elizabeth couldn't bear to watch what was about to happen. She squeezed her eyes shut to avoid what terrible fate would await him, but she opened one eye to make sure that nothing would happen. Maybe Tyler would just let him go. Tyler gripped Jax by the neck and instantly, Jax went limp and collapsed to the ground.

"NO! Jax, wake up!" Elizabeth screamed.

Tyler scooped Jax up and lifted him over his shoulder. He came to approach his brother who was still holding Elizabeth.

"Are you ready?" Tyler asked.

"More than you know," Tyson responded.

"You can't do this to me! My parents will find out and when they do, you'll never get away with this." Elizabeth warned.

Tyler and Tyson looked at each other and shared a knowing smile. They didn't care what the young girl was talking about.

"We don't have a problem with that. Because once we send word to your father, we're going to kill him," Tyson explained.

Those were the last words that the young princess heard before darkness engulfed her.


	10. Chapter 10

**This is an AU second gen Tangled fic.**

**Before I get started, I just want to thank everyone so far for reading and leaving wonderful comments. And a big fat shout-out to Me-Me Rotamundo and LadyMorgan9 for being so loyal to the story so far.**

**Make sure to Read, Review, Follow and Favorite.**

**And now...on with our feature presentation.**

* * *

During the afternoon, Rapunzel and Eugene were out in the villages surrounding Corona, hoping that someone had seen their daughter. Eugene was riding Maximus and as usual, the white stallion acted more like a hunting dog rather than a horse. Coming to one of the villages, the two dismounted their horses and secured the reins to fences on the outside.

"Come on, maybe someone here has seen her," Eugene said, holding out his hand to his wife.

"I sure hope so." Rapunzel replied and took his hand.

Entering the village, the two found vendors out on the streets along with musicians and artists. There seemed to be some sort of festival going on today for the villagers. The music that danced in the air brought a lively and energetic vibe to the place and Rapunzel found herself unconsciously tapping her feet to the beat.

"Oh Eugene, does this remind you of anything?" Rapunzel asked, gesturing to the place.

Looking around, Eugene put his hands on his waist and cocked his head as he observed the village.

"I am getting a sense of deja vu. But we can't be dancing right now. Let's wait until we find our daughter," Eugene reminded her.

"Of course. I'll go find someone to talk to." Rapunzel said and went on her way around the village.

Coming up to a pastry vendor, Rapunzel adored the many delicious cakes in front of her as she waited for the owner to finish up with another customer. Once he was done, he turned to her.

"Oh you again. Are you here to steal from me some more? Because I got half of a mind to slice off your right hand!" He bellowed.

Shocked, Rapunzel stepped back for a second, wondering why the vendor was all of a sudden acting so cold and unfriendly. When he looked at her a second time, his eyes immediately bugged out when he looked at the crown that graced her white streaked hair.

"Queen Consort Fitzherbert! My apologies your highness, I did not think you were who I thought you were." The man stuttered.

"And who did you think I was?" Rapunzel asked, curious as to what he had to say.

"Ah just some meddlesome teenager who looks like you. She was here the other day, stealing my treats!" He exclaimed.

He had seen Elizabeth! But why did he accuse her of stealing? Was it because she actually did? Delighted with this news, Rapunzel turned around to find her husband fooling around with some of the village children. Rolling her eyes, Rapunzel got his attention.

"Eugene, come here!" She waved at him.

Looking up to see his wife, Eugene made his way over to Rapunzel at the vendors shack.

"What is it? Did you find anything out?" He asked.

"This man says he's seen our daughter," Rapunzel explained.

"Wait a second...she's your daughter? THAT was Princess Elizabeth? Ugh! Had I known, I would have stopped her," The man cried.

Eugene looked curiously at the man after the outburst and wondered what he meant by 'stopping her?' Looking to Rapunzel, Eugene pulled her aside.

"What did he mean by that?" He asked.

"He explained that Elizabeth stole from his vendor," Rapunzel replied.

In a way, Eugene was flabbergasted at the actions that his daughter committed, but at the same time he was very amused. She had managed to live up to his name alright. He was torn as to being proud of her and being ready to ground her.

"Kind sir, do you know what happened to her after she stole from you?" Eugene inquired.

The man gathered his thoughts for a moment before speaking up again. Before he had a chance to reply, another customer came up and required some service. Apologizing, the man turned to help the lady for a second and when he was done, he turned back to the royal couple.

"She left with a young man. The guards chased after them but they got away. They headed out that way, into the forest." He pointed to the exit on the south side.

Looking to where he was pointing, the two thanked him and they went back to their horses and mounted on, guiding them out of the village.

"She was with a man? Do you think it was Prince Jax?" Rapunzel asked.

Eugene didn't answer her. Instead, his mind had wandered to what his daughter was doing, hanging around a man. She had strongly voiced that she didn't like boys and yet she was gallivanting around with one. Had she changed her mind about boys? What were the two doing i the forests...alone? The thought made Eugene cringe and curl his hands into fists. When he got his hands on that Prince, there would be consequences to pay. Maybe Prince Jax did something to his daughter that made her think differently. Maybe he kissed her! Maybe he...

"Eugene, you look like you're going to kill someone." Rapunzel called, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Sorry Blondie, I just want our daughter home," Eugene said.

Giving a weary smile, Rapunzel pulled up alongside him on her horse and she took one of his hands.

"We'll find her," She said, optimism pouring into her words.

The two rode in silence for the next few minutes until they came to an area with a cave. By this time, they were both hungry so they dismounted and settled on th grass to eat a small lunch before carrying on. As they ate the sandwiches that their cook made, Eugene saw something glimmer in the sun just off towards the cave. Curious, he got to his feet and went over to see what it was. Lying at his feet just in front of him was a small silver dagger with a red and white coloring on the handle.

Picking it up, Eugene made his way back to Rapunzel.

"Look what I found!" He said, showing he the dagger.

Noticing the red and white coloring around the handle, Rapunzel took the dagger from his hands to look at it more closely.

"Those are the colors for Galaekor! Jax was here." Rapunzel said.

"And so was Elizabeth! I found her satchel," Eugene said, standing over by a tree behind his wife.

Getting to her feet, Rapunzel joined him and they emptied the contents of the satchel. The contents included an apple, two tarts wrapped up, The Tale of Flynnagen Rider and a leather-bound book that had Elizabeth Fitzherbert written on the front.

"That's her diary. Let's see what she's written." Eugene said and held up the book.

Rapunzel immediately snatched it from him.

"What was that for?" He cried.

"Fathers shouldn't be allowed to read their daughters most private thoughts. I'll read it and give you a summary," Rapunzel explained.

Eugene gave an exaggerated sigh, but he complied. Sitting in the grass, he folded his arms and mock scowled with childishness. Giggling at her husbands childlike attitude, Rapunzel opened the leather-bound book and skipped earlier entries until she found the ones she was looking for.

_June 10, 1773_

_Dear Diary, mom and dad really want me to get married and have arranged a ball as a ceremony for my 16th birthday. UGH! No offense to them, but princes? Really? All they care about are themselves. Why would I ever want to marry someone who loves themself more than me? I don't get it! If I want to marry, I want my husband to love me and treat me like a princess. I want to find someone like dad. I see the way he looks at mom and it makes my heart break. I don't think that such a man exists anymore. I'll probably die an old maid :( _

Rapunzel gasped as she read the entry. So that's why her daughter kept refusing the princes that came her way! She didn't want to marry them because to her, they were complete jerks! Hearing her gasp, Eugene tried to lean in close to Rapunzel to see what she was reading, but she shoved him away.

"Eugene! Private thoughts, remember?" Rapunzel scolded.

"Oh come on! What's it gonna take for me to find out what's going on with our daughter?" He complained.

"Just...be patient," Rapunzel said.

Rapunzel flipped the page and read the latest entry.

_June 14, 1773_

_Dear Diary, I'm out of the castle! HAHA! Freedom! Anyways, I met up with this boy...sorry did I say boy? Well that's what I thought at first too. I immediately assumed that he was just another pompous idiot like those princes but no...he's different somehow. He calls himself Jax and well to be honest...I think he's pretty cute. He's just so different, so humble. He saved me from eating poison berries today and later on, he taught me how to snag food from the vendor. That was fun. Well later on when we came back to the cave, I couldn't help but...feel something for him. I think he did too, because I suddenly found myself kissing him...and I really liked it._

Finishing up reading, Rapunzel closed the diary and found herself feeling overjoyed. Even though she didn't get all the details to her daughter's whereabouts, she knew that her daughter was growing up.

"Well Punzie, what went on in there? You've got that smile on your face," Eugene pried.

"Oh, I don't think I'll tell you. You may have a fit," Rapunzel said, smirking.

"RAPUNZEL!" Eugene whined with annoyance.

Rapunzel rolled her green eyes and gathered everything back into the satchel. The royal couple got back on their feet and got on their horses.

"Let's just say that our little girl is growing up. Now let's head back to the castle before night falls," Rapunzel explained.

"Did the diary say where she went?" Eugene asked.

Rapunzel sadly shook her head and the two finally made their way back to the castle. When they arrived, a messenger bolted towards them.

"Your majesties, a letter was sent to you while you were out," The messenger announced.

Thanking him, Eugene took the letter as the two dismounted their horses and handed them off to the stable workers. They headed inside to their rooms and sat down to read the letter.

"Flynn Rider..." Eugene started reading and stopped mid-sentance as he read his old name.

Noticing his pale face, Rapunzel grew concerned and took the letter from him. She didn't dare read it out loud, for fear of what her husband would do.

_Flynn Rider, we have your daughter and if you ever want to see her alive, come alone to the old Castle along with ten pounds of gold. Show up with anyone and there is no gold, your daughter dies._

_Tyler and Tyson Stabbington  
P.S, she sure is a pretty little thing, isn't she?_

Rapunzels eyes burned with anger and tears and she threw the letter away from her. It landed by Eugene and he picked it up again and read through it, finding the courage to do so. After he was done, he got to his feet and went to put his boots back on.

"What are you doing?" Rapunzel asked, trying hard to push back her tears.

"I'm going to get our daughter back," Eugene said.

"WHAT? You can't go alone, Eugene! They'll kill you!" Rapunzel cried, getting off the bed and grabbing her husband's arm.

"If it means that our daughter is safe, I'm going," He said and made his way to the door.

He was angry...furious. He had never felt anger hit him so hard before and it almost made his vision completely red and he could barely walk straight. No one messed with his daughter, especially those two creeps. He knew that they were like, and he knew that they never went back on their word. He was going to get her back, and he would die saving her.

"Wait Eugene, if you are going to do this, then we need a plan. You are NOT going on your own," Rapunzel demanded.

Sighing, Eugene let go of the door handle and turned back to his wife. Crossing his arms, he looked down at her.

"Alright Punzie, what's the plan?" He asked, wanting to know.

Smiling, Rapunzel led him out of their room and they headed down to find the only people who could help them out.

The Snuggly Duckling gang.

* * *

**Yeah I realize it's a short chapter, but I needed something Eugene/Rapunzel centric.**

**Read and Review.**


	11. Chapter 11

**An AU Second Gen Tangled fic**

**Rated T to be safe**

**Disclaimer: As much as I wished that this happened to be the Tangled movie sequel, it isn't and I also have no ownership over Zachary Levi :(**

**Make sure to Read, Review, Favourite and Follow!**

* * *

Opening her green eyes, Elizabeth found herself in the familiar purple room from the tower that she was in earlier in the week. She was splayed out on the bed and she tried sitting up to recollect her thoughts. Instead of being able to sit up, she found that she couldn't move.

"What the...?" She muttered.

She tried moving her hands, only to find them secured tightly around her back. Then she remembered what happened back at the cave...those twin brothers had kidnapped her!

"Jax?" Elizabeth called out, looking around for him.

Her call alerted the brothers and Tyson entered the room; his eyes looking more menacing than before.

"Oh good, you're awake and just in time too," Tyson said.

"Why are you doing this? What has my father ever done to you?" Elizabeth questioned.

He made his way towards her, his towering height making her whimper in fear as he approached. Elizabeth felt some impending doom form in the pit of her stomach as he approached. He lowered himself down to the bed to meet her height gaze and he scowled at her.

"We've held a grudge against your father for years, ever since he stopped thieving and married that princess. He got to live in riches while we had to keep stealing to stay alive. After we escaped during his fiasco all those years ago, we vowed that we'd pay him back. And what better way to get revenge on him than by getting to his daughter?" Tyson explained.

With that, he grabbed her roughly around the waist and pulled her off of the bed that she was laying on. He got her to her feet and dragged her out of the room to the downstairs opening. When they reached the area, Elizabeth gasped when she saw Jax sitting in a chair tied up. He was still knocked out as his head was dropped slightly. Tyler stood behind the young man.

"Wake him," Tyson told his brother.

Nodding, Tyler roughly kicked the chair and caused it to jolt Jax awake.

"AH! Jax yelped as he woke.

Jax took in his surroundings and saw Elizabeth being held by Tyson. He didn't acknowledge his situation and he was ready to tear both men apart. Instead of lunging at Tyson, Jax only managed to throw himself with the chair down onto the floor with a loud thud.

"Uggghhh...I think I broke my nose," He gasped as Tyler brought his chair back up to a sitting position.

Although Elizabeth found this slightly amusing, she couldn't bring herself to laugh at it. Something terrible was going to happen to them, she just knew it. And it happened when Tyler turned to face Jax.

"Here, let me fix it," Tyler said and curled his hand into a fist, bringing it right down into Jaxs' face.

Elizabeth winced as she watched him get punched over and over again. She was scared, so scared that she shook under Tysons grip. She was sure that the two of them were going to be dead before her dad could find them. Or maybe the brothers were just going to torture the two long enough for her parents to see the conditions they were in before he joined them. The thought alone made Elizabeth feel lightheaded and she nearly collapsed to the floor.

"Woah," Tyson gasped as he tightened his hold around the princess.

"What do you want from us?" Jax demanded after Tyler stopped hitting him.

As pain shot through his body, Jax tried to mask his pain as he didn't want Elizabeth to worry so much about him. He could tell that she was scared and he didn't want her to know that he was as well. He had to be strong for the both of them. He held a strong composure as he sat there.

The brothers looked at each other, smiling as they came to an obvious conclusion: The two teens didn't know that the other was a royal!

"Oh this is good, this is very good indeed. You see young man, this girls father used to work with us many years ago, but he gave it all up to marry a princess; a princess who used to be locked up in this very tower," Tyler explained.

"Wait...You're a princess?" Jax asked, looking at Elizabeth.

"Well yeah. I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want you to think that I couldn't handle myself," Elizabeth confessed.

"It's just that, I'm royal too. My parents are the King and Queen of Galaekor," Jax told her, happy to finally know.

Elizabeth however didn't have the same reaction as him. She felt as if she had been punched in the gut...he was a prince! He never even hinted at it! He...he had been lying to her this entire time! True she never told him anything either but this was different! She didn't like princes! She thought that he was different, that he was just some lower class man this entire time! He was probably acting nice the whole time just to get her to fall for him. He was probably just like the other princes...all vain and snobbish.

While this happened, Jax had finally managed to slip out his smaller dagger that was hiding inside his sleeve and he started cutting away his ropes from the inside.

"Oh, it looks like you broke her heart," Tyson jeered.

"SHUT UP!" Jax yelled at him, not liking where this was going.

"You go on ahead up to the bedroom, I'll have my fun down here while we wait for Rider," Tyler told his brother.

"Wh...What's up in the bedroom?" Elizabeth whimpered, imagining all kind of torture devices.

Tyson just laughed.

"She sure is a naive little thing, isn't she?" He asked his brother.

Jax understood what was going on...and there was no way in hell he was going to let this man hurt her. She was a princess after all and she had to keep her dignity!

"NO! Don't you dare touch her!" Jax ordered as he finally broke his bonds and leapt at the man.

He would fight to keep them from touching her with his last breath. He couldn't let this happen to her. Lunging at Tyson, Jax shoved him away from Elizabeth and he tackled him to the floor, ready to pound his scarred up face in. The two men went a few rounds with fists flying and Elizabeth watched helplessly as Tyler went to rescue his brother. With him, Tyler held onto a knife that he took out of his sheath.

"NO!" Elizabeth screamed, as she feared what would happen next.

It was too late and Jax felt the knife pierce him in the back. He gasped in pain and he was torn off of the twin brother. Blood came pouring out of his shirt as he clutched onto his wound.

"He'll die soon enough. Take his body out of here and leave it for the coyotes," Tyson told his brother as he got to his feet.

He made his way to the young princess and got her to her feet. She struggled to get him off of her, but it was useless.

"I'll be back," Tyler announced, throwing the prince over his shoulder.

"Elizabeth..." Jax rasped as he looked at her.

"Jax..." Elizabeth chocked on her words.

She had never seen anyone in so much pain before and as she looked at him, Elizabeth wanted to take back everything that she thought about him. Prince or not, she loved him and now she would never see him again. She watched as Tyler and Jax left the tower and she let tears run down her face.

"Let's go," Tyson said as he carried her back up to the bedroom.

"No...NO!" Elizabeth screamed, as she feared for the worst.

* * *

"Yeah she was in here a few days ago. She managed to cheer all of us while we were feeling blue," Hookhand explained when Rapunzel and Eugene had entered the place.

"That's our daughter." Rapunzel beamed.

"So, you need our help to save her? What do we need to do?" Vladimir asked, folding his bulging arms over his chest.

"Well The Brothers told me to come alone or else they will kill her. But I know that even if I do show up on my own, they'll do it anyways. What we need is the element of surprise. Sneak attack them," Eugene explained.

"How about some distractions? Ulf and Gunther are good at that," Hookhand suggested.

"Great idea. You can be a traveling act on your way to the next village and you need a place to rest." Eugene said.

"Well what if they're not convinced? You did say that they're very skeptical," Rapunzel reminded her husband.

Eugene thought this over and stroked his stubbly chin. Then he remembered...

"Nah...they're too stupid to think otherwise," He said.

And so after much planning, the gang set off into the forest towards the tower to where The Princess of Corona was being held. Along the way, Bignose stopped short and caused the fellow travelers to bump into him.

"Hey! What gives?" Hookhand asked from behind.

"I smell something...fresh blood...human blood," Bignose announced.

Immediatly, Rapunzel and Eugene felt panic run through them. It was too late, their daughter was dead! They followed Bignose to the source of the smell, fearing for the worst. When they came to a clearing, their hearts slowed, but only by a bit. Instead of seeing their brunette daughter lying in a pool of blood, they found a young man around the age of nineteen instead. Wasn't that...?

"Prince Jaxton!" Rapunzel exclaimed as she rushed towards him.

She turned the young man over and found him still alive, but barely.

"Queen Fitzherbert...how did you...?" Jax whispered in pain.

"It doesn't matter. We found you and we're here to help," Rapunzel explained as she looked at his stab wound.

"She's in trouble, please...go save her. Forget about me." Jax tried to explain.

Rapunzel turned back to Eugene, wondering if it was okay to leave the young prince to die. Eugene shook his head 'no' and gestured to his wifes eyes. She knew what he was telling her.

"You go on ahead, we'll go get Elizabeth," Eugene said.

"Be careful," Rapunzel warned.

Giving her a reassuring smile, Eugene led the gang to the tower.

Rapunzel turned back to Jax and carefully turned him slightly so that his wound was looking straight at her. She winced at how deep the stab was.

"AGH!" Jax cried in pain.

"It's alright, stay with me." Rapunzel said and leaned in close to his back, willing herself to feel his pain in order to cry.

_"Flower gleam and glow. Let your power shine. Make the clock reverse, bring back what once was mine. Heal what has been hurt, change the fates' design. Save what has been lost, bring back what once was mine; what once was mine." _Rapunzel sang and let her tears flow into his stab wound.

The small gold flower symbol light sprouted from the wound, closing it up in the process. After a few minutes, Jax stirred and got to his feet. He looked at Rapunzel and gave a smile.

"So even without all that hair, you still have powers," He said.

"I do. Now come on, Eugene is going to need our help," Rapunzel said and led the young man to the tower.

But Jax wasn't patient enough to walk back. No...he knew that Elizabeth was in deep trouble and he had to keep her safe. Without so much as warning The Queen Consort, Jax picked up his speed and he bolted back to the tower.

"Prince Jaxton, wait!" Rapunzel called and ran after him.

"She's in trouble!" Jax yelled back to her.

Hearing the urgency in the young mans voice, Rapunzel ran after him towards her old home. They finally reached the grove of trees where Eugene planned for everyone to hide before putting their plan into action.

"Your highness, you must listen to me. Your daughter is about to get...r...ra...She's about to get hurt really badly. I don't think you have time for a plan," Jax explained to Eugene.

"Listen kid, I know those two better than you'll ever know. You can't just go barging in there without some plan and expect to take them down." Eugene told him.

"But I'm trying to tell you...if you don't go now then she'll be raped and god knows what else!" Jax exclaimed.

That got Eugenes attention. He turned to The Snuggly Duckling gang and saw each of them cracking their knuckles, ready to beat some bad guys brains in. He then looked at his wife and saw the same fear in her eyes that Jax also had. Well...so much for the element of surprise.

"Fine! Let's go!" Eugene said, finally caving to the entire situation.

Meanwhile back up in the tower, Elizabeth shook violently as she felt the cool air blow on her exposed skin. She felt disgusted with herself, she had never felt so humiliated in her entire life! She felt absolutely helpless when Tyson laid down and he roughly grabbed her hair.

"Where's your prince now?" He growled in her ear.

She was terrified, she wanted her father to show up already and take care of these guys. For once in her life, Elizabeth wanted to be saved and she cried as she realized that she would now be losing the most important people in her life. First Jax and in a matter of minutes, her own father and possibly her mother if she had come along.

She felt his weight come down on her and Elizabeth gasped in pain as she sunk lower into the bed. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for her life to end in that moment.

* * *

**What? A cliffhanger you say? Does this bother you? Oh well...deal with it :)**

**Anyways, make sure to Review...in that box...just right down there...**


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